Staff Favorites - Keith Wollenberg

Reviews

Another smoking deal from Washington State. This rich, focused, varietally correct Cabernet is something of a miracle. Most of the Cabs in this price-point either are a bit dilute on the palate, or tutti-frutti and of little interest. Well, here is the exception! Structured, with just enough new oak to be interesting but not enough to dominate, this shows those lovely lead pencil notes that are so charming. At this ridiculously value-priced retail, I suspect it will not be around for long.

This rich and delicious Saint Aubin comes from one of my favorite vineyards in Burgundy. It is located just over the hill from Chevalier Montrachet, and cheek by jowl with Puligny-Montrachet Champs Gain 1er Cru. If this said Puligny 1er Cru on the label it would sell for twice the price. This is rich and focused, long on the palate and quite delicious. Don't miss it!

This is darker and earthier in character with a thread of minerality that runs forever on your palate. When I tasted this, I asked Nicolas if this was from high on the hill, near Gaudichots. He smiled, raised his glass, nodded and winked, which I took as a clear "yes." This is a real sleeper, less known than his Gaudichots. Nicolas is using homeopathic/biodynamic sprays in this vineyard, as he puts it, "to give more information to the vines." Lovely black fruit here. Do not miss this in 2006! (03/2008)

In Burgundy, it is all about terroir, a sense of place. What this means is that it is location, location, location. And here we have it. Charmois sits right on the border with Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Chaumees. But wine from the other side of the invisible dotted line will cost you about 50% more money. So if you are looking for a bargain, you will see why we got the U.S. exclusive for this wine from Olivier Leflaive. Bright and crisp, with focused minerality and length, this is a terrific accompaniment for some grilled shrimp. The 15% of new oak gives a gentle toastiness to this wine, without dominating the flavors.

Bouzeron is a special place. Thanks to Aubert de Villaine, proprietor of the world famous Domaine de la Romanee Conti, it is an all-Aligote appellation. These vines are leased by Faiveley from de Villaine, and produce a wine that is bright and crisp, with a fascinating nuttiness. Delightful!

On the border between Rully and Mercurey in the Cote Chalonnaise, Domaine Faiveley sources their "Les Villeranges" from an east-facing vineyard planted in clay-limestone soils. The vines were planted between 1965 and 1982 and Faiveley only produces 200 cases of this cuvee annually. This has darker and denser fruit than the 2011, but retains the supple entry and lovely red and black fruit notes on the palate

This wine has become one of the flagships of the Faiveley portfolio the last few years. Singing with dark red fruit and boasting a truly impressive concentration, this is a wine to cellar, and to give time to mature. If you do, you will have an impressively balanced, truly Grand Cru experience. If you cannot wait, decant it for an hour or more to enjoy the opulent focused character of this wine.

It is rare that I get excited about Beaujolais Blanc. But that is because I love Chardonnay grown on limestone soils (like the Cote d'Or). Unfortunately, the limestone of the Cote d'Or and Cote Chalonaise dives deep undergound, leaving Beaujolais with a granitic soil, less well-suited for Chardonnay.

The cagey Jean-Paul Brun knows an amazing fact. In the far southern end of Beaujolais that magical limestone resurfaces. He was able to acquire some 80 year old Chardonnay vines on just this soil. he makes the wine in stainless steel, with no oak influence.

The result is an interesting Chardonnay of great richness, with pear and citrus notes. it finishes with bright and refreshing acidity and a rich buttery note. A charming wine for a song.

I thought I did not need a single additional wine gadget, but this one took me by surprise. It is the single best invention I have ever seen for opening old bottles of wine with long and fragile corks! It is a combination of an Ah-So style opener and a worm. Between them they reliably work together to grab the cork, and remove it intact. It is handmade in the U.S., from a design by Mark Taylor, and named to honor sommelier Yves Durand. It is not cheap. But if you are opening a priceless old bottle, it is well worth it to have an intact cork come out of that cherished wine bottle. I have one personally, and swear by it for old Bordeaux, Burgundy or California wines! Nothing is perfect, and no one bats 1000, but this device comes as close as I have encountered. There is a reason we have sold 100s of these, even at this price. If you open priceless old bottles, you can hardly afford to be without it.

This delightful sparkling rosé wine comes from Burgundy. It is made of 80% Pinot Noir and 20% Gamay Noir. The charming eye of the swan color comes from the addition of Pinot Noir to the wine when the lees are disgorged, following the traditional fermentation in the individual bottle, in the Champagne method. On the palate it is very rich and fruity but just off-dry on the finish. The mousse is explosive, with a very creamy palate impression. It shows just a hint of the earthiness of a Pinot Noir from Burgundy. This charming rosé, has been a perennial best-seller for K&L, and if you taste it, you will see why.

This has a beautiful light hue. It was done by the maceration of the Pinot Noir grapes, which is always tricky. The color is a beautiful light-pink hue, clear and sparkling in hue. It presents the same way on the palate, with a lifted character and a lovely strawberry note. I would have to say that seems highly pertinent for spring and summer drinking, but the winery charmingly calls it "L'Impertinente". Try a bottle and perhaps you, too will be feeling a touch impertinent.

Lovely, concentrated, most elegant in character. This was a vintage where there were a lot of shot bunches (the Burgundians call it millerandage, the Americans Hen and Chicks). the result is a concentrated, focused and most delightful Pinot that could hold its head high in any quarters.

Planted in 1946, so the vigor is low. Soils are a mixture of sandstone and decomposed sandstone (sand). Big, spicy and expressive on the palate, this nonetheless retains delicacy and focus, once you get past the rather steely structure. Decant this to drink now or wait some years.

This Volnay is a wonderful reflection of the village, coming, as it does form the Meursault side, the Pommard side and the top of the hill. It is rich and concentrated, with lovely ripe phenolics and a long and expressive finish. This domaine is a welcome addition to K&L's Direct Import program and represents an amazing value. 2/2015

A lovely ripe nose is followed by dark red fruits and a bit of earthiness. This lovely Santenay comes form the border with Maranges and shares that regions rich fruit character. The wine has very gentle tannins and a darker color due to the fermentation technique called delestage. A ripe, concentrated and lovely wine at a most reasonable tariff. Try a Premier Cru Burgundy from the original home of Pinot, for less than many Oregon Pinot Noirs, thanks to K&L's Direct Import program. 2/2015

For me, renardes, Bressandes and Clos du Roi are without equal among the grand cru reds from Crton. To findone, from a great vintage, at this price is only possible because of our direct purchase. The rich texture, drive and weight all reveal clearly tha tthis is Grand Cru. The palate impression is very rich, with ripe tannins. There is just a hint of sauvage/foxy notes that this vineyard is known for. Bravo Etienne! (03/2014)

As is often the case, there is a bright core of acidity here in the Aloxe, and more prominent red fruit notes. The tannin structure is very fine, and the finish persistent. Thi sis an elegant wine which will benefit from some time in the cellar. The color is deep and limpid, and athe lovely cherry fruit is most charming. (03/2014)

If you like your Bordeaux old-fashioned, earthy and not too powerful, this is NOT for you. But, if you love modern, rich, full-throttle Bordeaux, where they manage to find the balance of new oak, fruit and density, this IS for you. A dark and inky hue shows just a touch of ruby around the edge as the wine reaches almost ten years of age. This big, ripe, fleshy, almost burly wine shows toasty oak in the back palate and the material needed for hedonism today or a long nap in your cellar. A cult wine like this at 1/2 price, with bottle age already on it--what's not to like?

This may be the least expensive Cab in our stock that will age beautifully for a decade or more, It's solid, well-made, masculine and has a nice acidity to keep it fresh on the palate. Decant and drink now or age for 5-15 years. Just do not miss it entirely and regret it later.

This is very, very good. It has lovely fruit, and is just opening and losing its angularity it showed a year ago. This is bottled unfined and unfiltered and is a terrific cellar candidate. Don't overlook the so-called lesser vintages from great wine-growers like this! It has found a place in my cellar.

This organically and biodynamically-grown Pinot Noir shows a bit more flesh than past vintages, as it comes from two vineyards. One has gravelly soil, the other is a steep slope with more clay. The result is a Pinot of both finesse and power, at a very reasonable price for the quality. Bravo!

This is champagne that should sell for $100+. It is made entirely from Grand Cru fruit, averaging more than 45 years of vine age. It is all from Bouzy, a village known for its Pinot Noir, with south-facing vineyards (which is important in this high latitude). The nose promises red fruit and hints of brioche. It is rich and complex on the palate. But what really excites me is the acidity--2004 is a cooler vintage, with great promise for aging. If you are in Bouzy, this means that you have the ripeness and richness, but also have the focus, drive and energy that makes this truly exciting.

This has a most attractive bouquet, with notes of pear, rose hips and seashells. On the palate it walks a beautiful line between richness and tension. Plenty of focus and acidity, but also lots of mid-palate weight. this is subtle champagne and beautifully balanced. And the finish, well that is truly something. It fans out on your palate and lingers for a long time. Bravo!

This is one of the best Ryes I have tasted in years. It starts with a slightly fruity nose, then moves to a note like a sourdough rye bread I used to bake. On the palate it is subtle and balanced, with a note of candied Kumquats on the finish. The only experience like it I have had was when tasting a bottle of Prohibition Canadian Rye Whisky I found in a secret cupboard at my Grandfather's house in San Francisco in the mid 1970's, with the notation on the bottle that it could be dispensed only for medicinal purposes. The combination of malted rye and rye yields a focused, delicious dram. Miss this and you will be sorry.

This is a study in long aging on the lees, and the complexity that results. It as that calssic, yeasty nose, but on the palate it is complex and balnced, showing the ripenss of the vintage, but avoiding that clumsiness I sometimes found in 2005s (back when others were still bottling them). It is a real choice for me whether to go with age and power here, or elegance and delicacy with the 2006 Garance. Perhaps both, just with different courses?

This champagne is that color that is often called "Oeil de Perdrix", or Eye of the Partridge. But Garance Thienot winced, and said "I prefer Salmon". By either name, it is a beautiful light color, not bright pink, but subtle and lovely, implying the champagne will be as soft and delicate as it actually is. Delightful cherry and strawberry notes, lovely chalky minerality and a long finish. What a find!

Based on the 2004 vintage, this is a terrifically rich and very lovely champagne, made from old vines, planted in the 1920s, long before commercial clones were available. The reulting concentration and depth is a reward that exceeds many champagnes costing well over $100.

This represents a terrific value in a mature California Cabernet. If you are a fan of the modern fruit bomb style, skip this one. But, if like me, you love more classic , focused Cabernets, with a bit of earthiness, and elegant texture and mature aromas, then this is your cup of wine, so to speak.
I reccomend it with a nice grilled steak on the barbecue, or a smokey Portabello mushroom with olive oil and pepper, if you are of the vegetarian bent. The combination will richly reward you for a modest sum.

This is one of those occasions when you have to raise a toast to the champagne house. While the old Charles Heidseck was a solid bubbly, this is a huge step up. And the price increase is justifed by the increase in aged stocks and the higher quality overall. Delicious, rich and concentrated, with a fine mousse. Here's a toast to Champagne Charlie!

This terrific Methode Champenoise sparkling wine from Central Otago is made from 62% Pinot Noir and the rest Chardonnay. It has fine bubbles and is as close to Champagne as you will find, for about hlf the price. I drink it at home!